FRANK-RATCHYE PROJECT SPACE - NICK MALTAGLIATI
For the month of December, Root Division is showcasing Studio Artist Nick Maltagliati in the Frank-Ratchye Project Space. The artist, as a food server, has created an environmental installation entitled In the Weeds that seeks to illustrate a surrealistic, vague assertion of his ambivalent feelings towards serving in a restaurant. The title of the show is referential to the expression of the same name where a server is overwhelmed with the chaos and extraneous amount of demands. This show in as an immersive experience that allows Maltagliati to reflect upon the service industry’s internal drama and microaggressions.
“There are multiple layers of ‘self’ while being a server and each layer determines its own specific code. I have my true self away from work, I have my ‘employee’ self (who I am with coworkers or in work without customers), and finally I have my ‘server’ self. From my ‘server’ self I choose a route of how to break the ice, continue interaction, and departing phrases to guests. The depths of how coded I am at time concerns me and can flare up existential crises. There are moments of personal disparity that I have tried to infuse into some of my pieces.”
Read more about Maltagliati’s process and work here.
See In The Weeds at Root Division Gallery December 5th - December 20th, 2019. Join us for the opening reception on December 14, 7-10pm.
Nick Maltagaliati is a queer interdisciplinary artist working in painting, drawing, mixed media, and installation. He is proud of being being mixed race and integrates his ethnicity, sexuality, and mental state into his practice. He is a Bay Area native and has received his BA at San Francisco State University. He plans to attend grad school in the near future.
